Women's car insurance premiums to rise in just a month, but a third remain 'unaware' of gender ruling shake-up

Almost a third of women who face rising costs due to an EU ruling do not realise that their car insurance could rise steeply in just a month's time.

With little over a month until the EU gender ruling comes into force which will change how car insurance is calculated, 26 per cent of motorists are unaware their premiums could be hit, according to research by the AA.

From 21 December 2012 insurers will no longer be able to charge more depending on the sex of the driver. This is despite, statistically, young men being twice as likely to suffer a serious collision than young women, according to the motoring organisation.

Major changes: 40% of drivers had 'no idea' when the EU gender ruling changes come into force

Young men are also 10 times more likely to be killed or seriously injured in a car crash than those aged 35 or over.

Women are least likely to be aware that insurers will no longer be able to take gender into account when it comes to pricing, with 29 per cent of the 22,000 surveyed oblivious to the changes.

Yet women are more likely to see their premiums increase under the new law – young women particularly could see their annual premiums rocket by 25 per cent, while some experts believe they could even double in price.

At present, young women pay premiums that can be 40 per cent cheaper than young male drivers due to the fact they are statistically safer.

With the changes now just around the corner, 40 per cent had ‘no idea’ when the changes come into force, while a further 23 per cent think it’s happening sometime next year.

Young drivers aged 18-24 are most aware of the changes, with 78 per cent knowing about the change in the law.

Simon Douglas, director of AA Insurance, said: ‘Calculating premiums based on risk is fair and it works. But it has been abandoned in favour of gender equality.

‘For many years, insurers have charged young men much higher premiums than young women because they are so much more likely to make expensive insurance claims.

‘But as they get older, the difference between men and women in the number and cost of claims they make reduces and from around age 40, men and women pay similar premiums.'

Danger: Young men are twice as likely to suffer a serious collision than women, the AA says

When asked whether they expected their own premiums to rise following the ruling, half of drivers think they will go up while 38 per cent believe it will make no difference.

Women were more concerned with 66 per cent against 40 per cent of men expecting to see a rise in the cost of their annual policy.

Of the group most likely to be affected - those aged 18-25 – 72 per cent of women think their premium would rise while 35 per cent of men believe theirs would fall.

Overall though, a third of this age group expect to see no difference after the gender ruling.

Most insurance companies are likely to be offering gender-neutral policies by the end of November.

Simon Douglas adds: ‘Those expecting to renew or take out cover over the next couple of months may be advised to get a quote as soon as possible, before their insurer converts to gender-neutral policies and then obtain a gender-neutral quote.

‘The gender-specific quote should be honoured while it is still valid (typically 28 days) and the customer can then decide which policy is best for them. However, insurers will not be allowed to honour a gender-specific quote after 21st December.

‘Young women who have passed their test and are thinking of buying a car should act fast: gender-neutral premiums for them are likely to be much more expensive.

‘Young men in the same position may well be advised to wait until the New Year.’

Car insurance costs have fallen in recent months

The quarterly report from the motoring organisation said insurance premiums had stalled in the first half of the year.

While an analysis of 18million policies by comparison website MoneySupermarket showed the downward trend in car insurance pricing continued over the summer of 2012, with average annual premiums now standing at £456, a fall of 6.4 per cent. However, it says the EU gender ruling could result in the falls reversing.

Kevin Pratt, insurance spokesperson at MoneySupermarket.com, said: ‘Insurers are slowly releasing information on their plans for the implementation of the ECJ ruling, so we continue to expect uncertainty over the cost of car cover for the final quarter of this year.’